How police and government organisations use social media.
Words and images can be as powerful as bombs. To a certain extent, the fight of governments against the Islamic State (IS) is a ‘communications arms race’. Technology is advancing at an astonishing pace. How can we ensure that we do not fall behind? A chubby toddler proudly aims a machine gun at…
Using software to catch criminals in the act, or to prevent them from striking in the first place: it seems like science fiction, but it’s already happening in Amsterdam. Despite significant drawbacks to the current technology, it looks like Predictive Policing will soon be a reality. Predictive…
Homicide investigators in Amsterdam are turning to social media in the hopes of gathering more information about a gruesome murder in which a severed head was found on a city street, and the remaining body found inside a burning stolen van miles away. The death of 23-year-old Nabil Amzieb has…
Her Story is the new video game from Sam Barlow, creator of Silent Hill: Shattered Memories and Aisle. Acrime fiction game with non-linear storytelling, Her Story revolves around a police database full of live action video footage. It stars Viva Seifert, actress and one half of the band Joe…
A new research centre exploring how terrorism can be tackled through social media and new technology will be launched in Cardiff. Cardiff University will host the Open Source Communications, Analytics and Research (OSCAR) Development Centre. Funding has been secured through the £10m Police…
Cargo Decoder: Strategies In Software’s app provides first responders a guide to the material stored in trucks or tankers. A Voice Search feature allows fast querying, and partial UN/NA numbers or material names are recognized. The app provides information on toxic inhalation hazards and…
A guest article by Mark van Staalduinen (TNO) and Roeland van Zeijst (Dutch National Police) on the Dark Web, the Silk Road 2.0 case and expected future trends. Note: this article discusses several suspects in current criminal court cases, who of course are legally considered to be innocent…
Most police departments use social media to get help solving crimes. Take Burlington Police in the United States, for example. The department uses both Facebook and Twitter to get information and send it out. They also use the page to alert people of criminal arrests and alert drivers of traffic…
Hong-Eng Koh is Global Lead for the Justice and Public Safety, Oracle Corporation. He is leading a global team of experts in Justice & Public Safety, which focuses on various information systems such as police intelligence, prosecution, justice administration and public safety. Through research…
We have shared stories of phone hunts before, but this case as described on Storify is also a nice example of citizen sleuthing: [<a href=”//storify.com/thenextweb/iphonerescue-the-complete-saga” target=”_blank”>View the story “#iPhoneRescue: The Epic (True) Lost iPhone Story” on Storify</a>]…
Another one bites the dust – though in the positive sense of the word. Socially innovative initiatives such as crowdfunding platforms are popping up like mushrooms, but the legal realms have been largely left untouched. Until now. Ronald Lenz, a THNK Class 3 participant, together with fellow…
The police in Los Angeles announced to keep a close watch on the HiddenCash initiatives on social media. The modern treasure hunters climb trees and buildings looking for an envelope with money. Hundreds of people gathered when three people had found an envelope. The finders often communicate…
When do online music or lyrics become a criminal threat? The Internet is rife with violent talk from blogs to YouTube channels dedicated to dark and twisted fantasies. But when should threats be taken seriously? The Supreme Court of the United StatesMondaydecided to tackle that question with a…
The rave party in Mecosta County shows that, even years later, there are still stubborn copycats based on the film Project X (Part 2 of the film is not released yet). Several Facebook groups based on the original “Project P” (ProjectP) are indeed trending on Twitter and Facebook, but are not…
Dog the Bounty Hunter (Duane Chapman, 61), heeft social media ontdekt tijdens de jacht op War Machine (Jon Koppenhaver), een vechtsporter in de MMA (Mixed Martial Arts). En dat na 30 jaar werkervaring. De kranten koppen met titels als: “Dog the Bounty Hunter” unleashes the digital dogs:…
An American man Pedro Bravo supposedly asked Siri through voice control where he could dump the body, after just committing a murder. That was the storyline in most media as new evidence was presented in the case against the man. Pedro Bravo is on trial for the murder of an American student who…
A new generation and new communication tools. Also the Italian Mafia is using them. Where the old ‘Dons’ only used Pizzini’s, encrypted notes, the new generation of Mafia members make full use of social media. They have Facebook pages, use likes to express their interests, boast about their…
#Facebook is not a Law Enforcement issue, please don’t call us about it being down, we don’t know when FB will be back up! – Sgt. Brink (@LASDBrink) August 1, 2014 When Facebook was down in the USA, many people called 911. In New York, Los Angeles and other places Facebook was temporarily down…
In this blog we talk about how the influence or threat to court witnesses and / or informants can be gamechanging. We haven’t seen much of these cases yet, but maybe this happens more than we know. In Philadelphia, the police pulled a 17 year old student Nasheen Anderson of Martin Luther King…
Criminals also like to create Selfies. Take this intruder for example, who made a Selfie when he stole some food. Also stealing a phone and then taking a Selfie is not very smart. Or check out these 9 other criminal Selfies. Earlier, we saw people taking Selfies during suicides of others, but…
During a recent asbestos incident in a large municipality in the Netherlands, both the municipality and the housing corporation in question communicated with the residents. They forgot to harmonise their messages with each other. The result: residents who didn’t know what to do. That led to…
Social media developments are moving so rapidly that public safety and security is being transformed permanently. These information channels and communications platforms have become indispensable and have a huge impact on organisations, work processes and employees. “It is essential that this is…
The topic Big Data is ‘hot’. Big Data can be used to make information more transparent and usable, to support decision making, and product and service innovations. In addition, we currently find ourselves in the middle of a process in which a new balance is sought between a government that…
“During a research project for one of our clients, we logged onto Habbo-hotel. To our amazement we were approached quickly and various times with sexually-loaded comments that left little to the imagination. It is shocking. And disturbing. Particularly as this social platform focuses on…
A new mobile app can get anyone with a smartphone involved in the search for a hit-and-run driver. The app was created as a part of the Medina Alert system, which was named after Jose Medina, a man who died in a hit-and-run accident on Lincoln Street in Denver. The system has already proven to…
On 24 April 2014, five smart sensor concepts aimed at reducing domestic burglaries were presented to police chief Frans Heeres, High Impact Crime portfolio holder. The concepts are based on existing technology, but what makes them new is the fact that they combine technological and social…
Last week Sogetit held their 20th anniversary for the VINT symposium where innovative topics have been discussed on stage for two centuries by now. Do follow their blog to get free updates on the latest innovative ICT developments. Below is a report from Jaap Bloem about this symposium which was…
Dallas Police Department Rolls Out Aggressive Social Media Strategy Plans call for more use of social media to build relationships & increase community cooperation & trust By: Lauri Stevens As one of the 10 largest police departments in the country, the Dallas Police Department (DPD) was keenly…
Social media today are the most popular means to share photos, videos, stories, thoughts and everything that engages us in sharing with other people. Whether we know them or not. But all of this information could be used for other purposes too. If you were to work in the advertising business all…
A 14-year-old Dutch girl who tweeted a terror threat to American Airlines as a “joke” has reportedly been arrested by police in Rotterdam. A Twitter user calling herself Sarah with the handle @QueenDemetriax_ tweeted: American Airlines responded swiftly from their official Twitter account and…
Policing in Kenia When four machete-wielding thieves invaded a home in Lanet Umoja, Kenya, they were met by an army of crime-fighters – citizen crime-fighters, that is. Chief of Police Francis Kariuki had at his disposal one of the most powerful communication tools known to man. He had Twitter.…
The old Wanted posters from the Wild West that had to be distributed with the stagecoach are now still used, but on a modern and digital bulletin board on the Internet. But being creative also helps. In 1984 the National Child Safety Council launched the first National Missing Children Milk…
If in social venues something goes wrong you have for example the barman in a pub whom you can talk to, at larger venues, there are porters, but most social media services have entire departments. But they service the whole world. Facebook has, for some time now, a Safety Center that is intended…
A ladder of citizen participation Arnstein, S.R. (1969). A ladder of citizen participation. In: JAIP jrg. 35, nr. 4, pp. 216-224. Arnstein ladder of citizen participation from socialmediadna Citizen police (Nyenrode Now publication) Nyenrode NOW (2007). “Citizen Police”. Tijdschrift nr 3. pp…
In order to get an overview of the advantages and disadvantages that social media generate a vintage method was restyled: a SWOT, but in this particular case not based on an organization or an individual, but based on the phenomenon “social media”. We present a social media SWOT ~ with a twist~,…
A new bracelet should make the world a little safer and protect women against robberies and rapes. In America, Britain and Canada bracelets like Safelet are already a great success. Not to be confused with the SafeletBracelet. The Safelet is a sleekly designed safety bracelet that is linked to…